Futures Edge Lower; Investors Await Fed, ECB

U.S. stock index futurespointed to a slightly lower open Monday ahead of Geithner's meeting with Germany's finance minister and as investors awaited news from the ECB and possible hints of more stimulus from the Federal Reserve.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner meets German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaueble. He will also meet ECB President Mario Draghi on his European visit to discuss the state of the economy.

Stocks closed out a volatile week with sharp gainsin the previous week, with the Dow crossing above 13,000 for the first time since May, amid optimism that the Federal Reserve and the ECB may provide further stimulus to prop up the global economy.

European shares traded higherafter Italy's borrowing costs fell below 6 percent for the first time since April and Spanish yields pulled back from a peak hit last week, helped by hopes of fresh measures from the European Central Bank to fight the euro zone debt crisis. Last week, ECB chief Mario Draghi said the bank was ready to do whatever was necessaryto save the euro.

The U.S. Federal Reserve also will hold a two-day meeting this week. U.S. investors will be looking for signs as to whether the Fed will undertake additional steps to spur growth.

A patent trial between Apple and Samsung is set to kick off in the U.S. with billions at stake. The jury selection is scheduled to start today. Separately, according to unconfirmed reports, Apple will hold an event on Sept. 12 to unveil the iPhone 5 and the iPad mini.

Boeing said the National Transportation Safety Board is investigating a potential problem with an engine on a 787 Dreamliner on the heels of an incident in in South Carolina during a preflight test over the weekend.

Chevron said itplans to invest $2 billion to develop its Lianzi oilfield straddling the maritime border between Republic of Congo and Angola.

On the M&A front, engineering company Chicago Bridge & Iron said it would acquire Shaw Group in a deal worth nearly $3 billion. Shaw would continue as a business segment branded as CB&I Shaw.

Earnings season continues this week, but no Dow components are due to report on Monday. Dow component Pfizer, Kraft and P&G are scheduled to post throughout the week along with other notable firms including Comcast, General Motors, LinkedIn and Berkshire Hathaway. (Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC.)